There’s a lot to be said for a good dinner: it can change your life. Sally Jackson and Sarah Spiteri met at a dinner almost nine years ago and it so happened that they were both interested in baroque music and period instruments. It turned out to be a very long and memorable meal.
Spiteri is well established on the local music scene as a violin and viola player.
She has also organised countless concerts and child-oriented music events, including the lunchtime concert series at the church of St Catherine of Italy in Valletta, which often delved into baroque music.
It was through the encouragement of George Debono, an early music enthusiast and instrument builder, that she started looking more into historical performance.
Jackson specialises in historical bassoons (including an instrument called a ‘dulcian’), working regularly with ensembles such as the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and the English Concert.
Thanks to a strong connection to the island, courtesy of her Maltese grandfather, she has always been aware of the number of fantastic and authentic baroque spaces in Malta.
Forming a period instrument ensemble fit to perform in these historic venues has been a long held ambition.
Thus, the collaboration and friendship between the two women became the foundation for what would eventually shape up as the Valletta International Baroque Ensemble or Vibe for short.
“Every major city in Europe has at least one group specialising in period instruments,” says Sally, “and with so many talented local musicians and the upcoming Valletta 2018 on the way, we wanted to create an ensemble worthy of other European capitals.”
It was then that they approached Kenneth Zammit Tabona, who was himself embarking on the gargantuan project of the Valletta International Baroque Festival to find ways of working together.
He was happy to support the project and, in fact, Vibe became the resident ensemble of the festival, besides falling under the auspices of the Manoel Theatre.
At this point one would perhaps wonder why bother with a period instrument ensemble.
We do not do it just for the kick of playing on old instruments. The instruments of the time were fundamentally different and this affects our playing style resulting in a completely different sound
Spiteri explains in more detail: “We do not do it just for the kick of playing on old instruments. The instruments of the time were fundamentally different and this affects our playing style, resulting in a completely different sound. Of course there are no recordings from the period and we do have our 21st-century musical baggage, but you do discover a new sound which changes the way we listen to the music.
“This has also opened up an opportunity to explore and regularly perform music from the 16th and and 17th century as it may have been heard.
“Many obsolete instruments, such as the viola da gamba and the theorbo, have a wealth of repertoire written for them that we can now enjoy once more. Instruments like the sackbut, the cornet and the dulcian developed into the modern trombone and trumpet and bassoon and yet they are a world apart.”
But cannot Baroque music be played on modern instruments anyway?
“Yes, of course and there is nothing wrong with that, but that is just one interpretation,” says Spiteri.
To which Jackson adds: “Take for example Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 2. The modern trumpet is capable of obliterating the sound of a recorder, whereas in Bach’s day the smaller bore baroque trumpet was very much it’s equal and they complemented each other beautifully.”
Vibe is an unusual ensemble. There is no resident conductor and most performances are coordinated by the performers themselves.
If a conductor is appropriate, an internationally-respected musician in the field of early music is invited, such as happened with the Monteverdi Vespers, where Eamon Dougan, associate director of The Sixteen, was brought in.
This also puts on a lot of responsibility on the performers as every musician is on an equal footing. Clearly, there is no space for divas or egos in such a set up.
The core group was established in 2012 and is made up of about 15 Maltese musicians and singers who collaborate with established foreign specialists for performances and workshops.
Highlights to date have included a well-received performance of the Monteverdi Vespers at this year’s Valletta International Baroque Festival and a concert which initially launched the ensemble starring the soprano Dame Emma Kirkby, one of the most renowned and respected singers working in the field of historical performance. Kirkby is also the patron of the ensemble.
So what next for the ensemble? “Our aim is to develop and grow nationally with a view to becoming cultural ambassadors for V18 and Malta in general,” says Jackson.
“This is ultimately a homegrown ensemble which includes some of the foremost professional musicians on the island. We are lucky and grateful that there is a line vote from government to help the ensemble in its work.”
Among the many future plans and projects, Vibe will be performing in two concerts for next year’s Baroque Festival. One of these concerts celebrates Maltese baroque music and includes the work of Geronimo Abos.
“There has been a lot of scholarly musicological research done into Maltese baroque music, including work by Joseph Vella, Frederick Aquilina and Richard Divall. We now want to build on that and get those works which have been in the archives for far too long performed. We are also keen to help musicians interested in this venture by acquiring period instruments. Vibe is investing in cornets, sackbuts and baroque bows, but there is so much more to be done.”
Dulcians, sackbuts and cornets all sound like something out of a science fiction novel.
“We landed on the planet of the Dulcians, who came forth riding cornets across the craters wielding sackbuts,” sounds pretty convincing.
In reality, this is indeed another world, a wonderful sonic experience from the past that informs our present way of listening.
“Vibe is exciting,” they both join in. “It is about listening with fresh ears and disproving once and for all that baroque music is all serious and stuffy. Vibe – the name says it all.”
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